As its Sunderland plant reopens, the carmaker will turn again to a problem as intractable now as it was in 2016It must have been a strange last four years for the workers at Nissan’s Sunderland factory, as they went about their business of making cars while at the same time being caught in a symbolic tug of war between a divided Brexit nation.
When things are going well for the plant, it apparently shows that Global Britain is surging ahead of rivals; when the wind turns, it is a symbol of the UK’s industrial decline, with government having to go chequebook in hand to bureaucrats in Japan to keep it afloat.

Leaked letter instructs ministers to have ‘no specific policy’ on the issueDowning Street has been accused of reopening the door to imports of chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef, after a leaked memo instructed ministers to have “no specific policy” on animal welfare in US trade talks.
The letter from No 10 states that the ministerial mandate for the US negotiations was “being updated to reflect” the fact that the UK was to have no policy position on animal welfare.

A new wave of austerity is on the horizon and Keir Starmer’s party must now stand up for those it is going to hit hardest
If you relied only on common sense and the average news coverage, you could be forgiven for underestimating the scale of the crisis that is about to unfold.
The news is full of scandals about advisers undertaking implausibly long-distance eye tests and, after such a shattering human tragedy, it does not emotionally feel possible that the world is about to experience its worst economic collapse.

Downing Street welcomes lastest move after week of stuttering trade negotiations
Michel Barnier has signalled that he is ready to drop the EU’s most contentious demand that its rules limiting government subsidies to businesses are inserted into British law after another week of stuttering negotiations over a future trade and security deal.
In a move immediately welcomed in Downing Street, the bloc’s chief negotiator declined to publicly back the EU’s opening demand that the UK incorporate Brussels’ state aid rules into its domestic legislation.

Exclusive: Bob Seely was at gathering when guidance said you could only meet one other person
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The Tory MP spearheading efforts to promote the Covid-19 contact-tracing app trial on the Isle of Wight appears to have broken lockdown rules at a barbecue also attended by the chairman of the Brexit party and political journalists, the Guardian has learned.
Bob Seely went to the evening gathering hosted by the Spectator magazine’s deputy editor, Freddy Gray, in the village of Seaview on the island last month.

Carmaker hopes to cut 1,000 jobs through voluntary redundancies but warns no-deal Brexit will deepen coronavirus impact
Bentley has confirmed it is seeking to make 1,000 job cuts through a voluntary redundancy scheme, shrinking its workforce by almost a quarter as it responds to the coronavirus pandemic.
The luxury carmaker warned that it could not rule out future compulsory redundancies, as the pandemic cuts demand for cars.

BORIS JOHNSON has been unanimously backed to not compromise on fishing rights with the European Union in order to secure a post-Brexit trade deal, as he was warned doing so could lead to the end of his tenure as Prime Minister.

THE European Union has been accused of "preparing its ground for the inevitable blame game" following Michel Barnier's offer to extend the Brexit transition period by up to two years as bitter trade deal talks with the UK threaten to collapse.

THE European Union has been brutally torn apart by Members of the European Parliament in a new scathing report, as huge pressure builds on the bloc to restructure itself following Brexit and the coronavirus crisis.

Michael Clauss says talks will be a focus from September and UK needs more realistic approach
Britain must give away some sovereignty to secure free trade with the EU but Europe’s leaders will intervene in the negotiations in the autumn with the aim of sealing a compromise deal at a summit on 15 October, Germany’s ambassador in Brussels has said.
Michael Clauss, whose country will take over the rolling presidency of the EU for the second half of the year, said there had been “no real progress” in the talks so far but predicted they would become the EU’s main political focus in September and October.

THERESA May has been told to keep her views on Brexit to herself by a eurosceptic think tank - which also accused her of failing to deliver on the clear instruction to take the UK out of the EU during her time as Prime Minister.

CONCERNS over car manufacturer Nissan's warnings that a no deal Brexit could topple one of the UK's largest plants were slapped down by Business Minister Nadhim Zahawi as he dismantled the BBC's report.

Keen to show he has a grip, the prime minister is gambling with people’s health as he tries to get back to Brexit
News that Boris Johnson is to take “direct control” of the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis raises more questions than it answers.

Hundreds of thousands back farmers’ demands for law to protect food standards
More than a quarter of a million people have signed a petition calling for a ban on cheaply produced low-quality food imports in post-Brexit trade deals.
The National Farmers Union (NFU) is lobbying government to ensure that imports from countries such as the US, produced to lower standards than expected of UK farmers, should not be allowed.

Labour leader says prime minister has made ‘difficult situation 10 times worse’ in Guardian interview ahead of PMQs
Keir Starmer warns PM: get a grip or risk second wave of coronavirus
Decade of progress in tackling pupil disadvantage ‘wiped out’
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11.25am BST
The Imperial College paper (pdf) published on 16 March is the one that is generally credited with triggering the lockdown because it contained modelling showing that the NHS would be overwhelmed unless extreme measures were taken to suppress the virus.

The Vote Leavers at the heart of government think the coronavirus crash will disguise the pain caused by a rupture with the EU
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Most of us who have followed Brexit closely believed coronavirus would soften the government’s stance in trade talks with Europe.

Assembly says complex border checks cannot be imposed while UK occupied with Covid-19 crisis
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The Northern Ireland assembly has unexpectedly voted in favour of calling for an extension to the Brexit transition period, arguing that the UK government cannot impose complex border checks down the Irish Sea while Britain is occupied with the coronavirus crisis.
In a surprise development, nationalist, green and social democratic parties held sway in Stormont, saying business cannot prepare for a no-deal Brexit in the middle of a pandemic. Continue reading...

A PLOT from Remainers to delay the transition period and subsequently Brexit by a further two years has been brutally destroyed by a Tory MP as trade talks between the UK and European Union enter a crucial stage.

BRITISH fishing industry leaders have warned colleagues to brace for blockades of UK ports from French rivals who lose out on huge access to the country's territorial waters as part of the post-Brexit trade deal.

(Bloomberg) -- Follow Bloomberg on LINE messenger for all the business news and analysis you need.The Indian stock market’s honeymoon with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is under strain.In the first year of Modi’s second term, India has erased more shareholder wealth than any other country on the planet, except Brexit-swayed Britain.